Conventionally, the term ATV or all-terrain vehicle has been limited to straddle-seat, wheeled vehicles that are constructed to accommodate just one rider/driver. The Consumer Product Safety Commission uses the one-rider limitation to define “ATV” due to the belief that straddle-seat, wheeled vehicles could not safely accommodate more than one rider.
As illustrated in FIGS. 11A and 11B, despite numerous warnings that a conventional ATV 1000 is designed for just one driver 1010, in practice, a passenger 1020 often rides on the one-person ATV 1000. Placing two riders 1010, 1020 on the one-rider ATV 1000 creates several problems. First, as illustrated in FIG. 11A, because the seat of the one-person ATV 1000 is designed to accommodate just one rider, the passenger 1020 must uncomfortably squeeze onto the ATV's one-person seat between the driver 1010 and a rear rack 1030. Second, as illustrated in FIG. 11B, a footrest 1040 of the ATV 1000 is similarly designed to only be long enough to accommodate the feet of the one intended rider 1010. The wheelbase of the ATV 1000 limits the space between front and rear fenders 1050, 1060. Consequently, the driver 1010 and passenger 1020 must uncomfortably share the one-person footrest 1040. Third, because the driver 1010 and passenger 1020 must be so tightly squeezed together, the legs of the passenger 1020 inhibit the ability of the driver 1010 to move, while the body of the driver 1010 inhibits the ability of the passenger 1020 to move. Such limited mobility disadvantageously limits the abilities of both riders 1010, 1020 to actively position themselves (e.g., lean into curves or slopes to stabilize the ATV 1000). Fourth, as shown in FIG. 11A, a center of gravity of the passenger 1020 is longitudinally positioned at, near, or even behind a rear wheel axis 1070 of the ATV 1000 such that the back of the passenger 1020 is disposed rearwardly of the rear wheel axis 1070. Such positioning disadvantageously shifts the combined center of gravity of the ATV 1000 and riders 1010, 1020 rearwardly, thereby increasing the risk of tipping the ATV 1000.
As illustrated in FIGS. 12A and 12B, a conventional after-market passenger seat 1100 was developed in an attempt to provide a seat for the passenger 1020 that can be attached to a conventional one-person ATV like the ATV 1000. While the passenger seat 1100 provides more longitudinal space for the passenger 1020, it suffers from many of the same deficiencies encountered when the passenger 1020 rides on the ATV 1000 without a passenger seat 1100 (as shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B). Furthermore, the seat 1100 creates additional problems for the ATV 1000 and riders 1010, 1020. First, in order to give the passenger 1020 more longitudinal space, the seat 1100 must be shifted far to the rear of the ATV 1000. As illustrated in FIG. 12A, such positioning places the center of gravity of the passenger 1020 well behind the rear wheel axis 1070 of the ATV 1000, which results in a combined ATV 1000 and rider 1010, 1020 center of gravity that is farther behind the rear wheel axis as compared to the dual-rider situation shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B. Second, because the passenger seat 1100 is positioned on top of the conventional rear rack 1030 of the ATV 1000, the passenger seat 1100 places the center of gravity of the passenger 1020 in an elevated position on the ATV 1000, which further impairs the stability of both the passenger 1020 and the ATV 1000. Furthermore, as illustrated in FIG. 12B, the extremely elevated position of the seat 1100 relative to the driver's seat could cause the knees of the passenger 1020 to interfere with the elbows of the driver 1010. Fourth, upwardly extending, rigid sides 1110 of the seat 1100 force the legs of the passenger 1020 laterally inwardly, which further reduces the mobility of both the driver 1010 and the passenger 1020 and impairs their abilities to actively position themselves during operation of the ATV 1000. Still further, placing the passenger seat 1100 on top of the rear rack 1030 disadvantageously eliminates the storage space on the rear rack 1030. While the passenger seat 1100 opens up to provide a small, internal storage compartment, such a storage compartment is quite limited as compared to the large, open space provided above the rear rack 1030 when the passenger seat 1100 is removed.
Amacker (U.S. Pat. No. 4,247,030) discloses a passenger seat for an ATV that is similar to the after-market passenger seat 1100 illustrated in FIGS. 12A and 12B and suffers from many of the same shortcomings. As illustrated in FIG. 3 of Amacker, the passenger's center of gravity is disposed well behind the rear axis and therefore disadvantageously increases the risk of rearward rollover of the ATV. Furthermore, both the passenger's legs and feet and the driver's legs and feet must be disposed at the same longitudinal position on the ATV, which causes the driver and the passenger to interfere with each other's mobility and thereby inhibit their ability to actively position themselves.